anyone know anything about air conditioners?

[captain2man]

I'm sure somebody in 2p2 is handy & might know a thing or 2 about A/C's.

Nothing like having A/C problems in the dead of summer.

I have a Samsung AW1480A air conditioner. It's 5 years old and has worked great up until yesterday. Although the A/C came with a remote - I never use it...i only use the control panel on the A/C. Yesterday when I got home, the A/C wouldn't turn on. I plugged something else into the outlet to check that the outlet was working fine (it was)...I plugged the A/C back in - and it beeped. I pressed the power button a few times & finally it did turn on. This morning when I went to shut it off before going to work, the power button wouldn't respond. I couldn't shut it off! I finally shut it off by just unplugging it (probably not good for the A/C, I know).

When I got home from work today, I plugged it back in - heard the beep - but I couldn't get it going. I did find that the only 2 buttons that work are the Timer button & the button that makes the thermostat go up - so - I can get the A/C to turn on & off by using the Timer button but I can't get it cooler than 75 degrees. I can't believe the entire keypad other than those 2 buttons wore out at the same time like that. The air filter is completely clean - so it's not that.

I did take out the remote, and found corroded batteries. I cleaned it out (used some baking soda & water) - put in brand new batteries - but the A/C didn't respond to the remote at all (but that could just be a busted remote - I just ordered a new one).

So - any theories on this one? Couldn't find any troubleshooting guides which addressed this. Do I just need a new control panel or something - or is there something obvious I'm missing here?

Is the lifespan of an A/C only 5 years these days?? My parents' house has A/C's which are 10-15 years old & work absolutely fine.

Thanks...

[jsaund22]

Had any electrical storms lately? Sounds like a fried controller. I don't know how much it would cost to get that fixed, but it may just be cheaper to get another...

Call your local AC repair shop and tell them you think you have a bad controller and ask for a repair estimate. Then comparision shop new units. Take the cheaper of the two.

My rule of thumb for items like this: If it's not permanently attached to my house, it's probably disposable if it breaks.

[boscoboy]

[ QUOTE ]

My rule of thumb for items like this: If it's not permanently attached to my house, it's probably disposable if it breaks.

[/ QUOTE ]

no way this is worth fixing - beat it with a hammer and if that doesnt fix the problem head to lowes. ensure you get the proper size for the dimensions of the room you are cooling.